The MSRB and the Boston Women in Public Finance will co-host an education and outreach event for municipal market professionals on July 23, 2013, in Boston, MA. See: Press Release.

Chairman Gary Gensler released a paper, previously published in a French financial journal in April, that focuses on cross-border regulation of the swaps market. According to his paper, as the financial system failed in 2008, the swaps market, which was basically not regulated in the United States, Europe, Canada or Asia, failed to meet their objectives, causing a great financial crisis. Chairman Gensler's paper is divided into the following areas of focus: New International Consensus to Reform the Swaps Market Transparency - Lowering Cost and Increasing Liquidity, Efficiency, and Competition

CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton gave a speech to the Institute of International Bankers ("IIB") using popular movies to illustrate the benefits of government regulation in industries such as food, energy and pharmaceutical. However, Commissioner Chilton also acknowledged that government regulations are sometimes overbroad and unnecessary. He concluded by discussing how, as in life, regulations require a balance approached. To that end, he asserted the virtues of the Volcker Rule and the Cross-Border Guidance and how both proposals strike the proper balanced approach to regulation. Lofchie

SIMFA responded with additional proposals to MSRB's request for comment on its proposed sophisticated municipal market professional rules. SIMFA stated that it continues to support MSRB's proposed efforts to clarify Rule G-17 and still supports the requirement that proposed Rule G-48 reference a firm's reduced obligation to SMMPs by cross-referencing with proposed Rule G-48. However, SIFMA also would like to see several additional proposals simultaneously implemented by the MSRB. The SIFMA requests include: Proposed Rule D-15: Expanding the definition of Sophisticated Municipal Market

SIFMA released a happy statement from president Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr., after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ("OCC") informed financial institutions active in derivatives markets that it has extended the effective date of the so-called swap push-out rule's effective date by two years. See: Statement. See also: (The rule that was the subject of the statement) FRB Provides Lincoln (Push Out) Relief to U.S. Branches of Non-U.S. Banks (Regulation KK) (with Cammarn Comment).